In the drive for renewable sources of energy, photovoltaic technology has assumed a preeminent position as a cheap and renewable source of clean energy. For example, photovoltaic cells using a Copper Indium Gallium Diselenide (CIGS) absorber layer offer great promise for thin-film photovoltaic cells having high efficiency and low cost. Of comparable importance to the technology used to fabricate thin-film cells themselves is the technology used to collect electrical current from the cells and to interconnect one photovoltaic cell to another to form a photovoltaic module.
Just as the efficiency of thin-film photovoltaic cells is affected by parasitic series resistances, photovoltaic modules fabricated from multiple cells are also impacted by parasitic series resistances and other factors caused by electrical connections to the absorber layer and other electrical connections within the modules. A significant challenge is the development of current collection and interconnection structures that improve overall performance of the module. Moreover, the reliability of photovoltaic modules is equally important as it determines their useful life, cost effectiveness, and viability as reliable alternative sources of energy.